London: The global response to the shooting of Malala Yousafzai by the Taliban was a "turning point" for Pakistan’s fight against militancy, the father of the women education rights activist has said.
“The person who attacked her wanted to kill her, but she fell temporarily. She will rise again and she can stand now. But when she fell, Pakistan stood and the world rose. This is a turning point,” Ziauddin Yousafzai said during a news conference in a UK hospital.
According to the Telegraph, Yousafzai said the family had a tearful reunion and that the world`s response marked a watershed for Pakistan.
Yousafzai also said that his daughter has started walking and talking after asking for schoolbooks to be brought to hospital in Birmingham.
“She is improving with encouraging speed and we are very happy,” he said, adding that his daughter was walking, talking, eating and smiling.
Malala was shot as she travelled home from school on October 9 in her hometown of Mingora.
The bullet, which grazed her brain and came within centimetres of killing her, travelled through her head and neck before lodging in her left shoulder.
The Pakistan Taliban later claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was punishment for campaigning for the rights of girls to go to school.
ANI
